A Day in the Life of a Veterinary Technician

October 15, 2014

Julie with Gidget

Hi everyone. Welcome back to Tales & Tails with Dr. Ferrell. Most of you probably don’t know that this week is National Veterinary Technician Week, but at Perimeter Veterinary Center we welcome the chance to recognize all the hard work technicians do. I thought I might tell you a bit about what our technicians, Julie and Leslie, do for us and for you every day.

The job of a veterinary technician is varied and demanding. It involves reception work, client interactions and education, patient care, cleaning, dealing with us doctors, and so much more. Here’s a small glimpse into their typical day.

Our staff members arrive long before we even open to prepare the clinic for your arrival and make sure you receive a warm welcome and a comfortable visit.

They ensure everything is sparkling clean and that our hospitality table is ready for those of you needing a morning pick-me-up.

They review the entire day’s schedule and make sure they’re prepared with everything we’ll need to ensure you have a smooth and efficient visit.

They care for any patients in the hospital, ensure they’re comfortable, administer medications and give treatments where needed. That includes caring for our current resident kitty, Bobby, who needs special food and insulin injections for his diabetes. It also includes plenty of TLC for each and every one of our fuzzy visitors.

They set up for all of the day’s surgeries and dental procedures so your pet has a soft and comfortable bed to rest in upon arrival and so your pet’s procedures proceed with no stress for our furry friends.

They draw blood for pre-anesthetic testing and run those tests in our in-house

Leslie with Marmalade

laboratory for quick results. They review results with the doctors and make any needed changes to the anesthetic protocol and procedure technique.

They set catheters and prepare pets for anesthesia, dentals, and surgeries.

After appointments and procedures they disinfect each room and ensure total cleanliness for the next patient. They also clean and sterilize every single instrument we’ve used each day in our ultrasonic cleaner and autoclave.

They take time every day to check in with any sick patients’ parents that we’ve seen recently to ensure everyone is on the mend and no additional issues have arisen. They follow up with any questions that arise and make sure all of your concerns are addressed.

Our clinic is about 2800 square feet and the staff cleans it top to bottom every evening. That also includes keeping the outside yard and parking lot clean which is a big job in itself.

And don’t forget that they often leave a day’s work with poop, pee, anal glands, urine, or blood on them somewhere.

So, as you can see, technician is not an apt job description. These staff members are customer service representatives, teachers, nurses, janitors, doctors’ assistants, and so much more. I didn’t even begin to address the myriad of small jobs they fit in with all their other duties, like checking the mail and emptying the trash. We couldn’t function without them! Thanks so much guys!! We hope you know how much we value you!